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A. BUSINESS PROFILE

The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney is an American diversified multinational

mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in

Burbank, California (Wikipedia.org). Disney, as we all know is the owner, or creator of prominent cartoon

figures like Mickey Mouse, and Alice in wonderland, and the creator of movies that features princesses

such as Snow White, Mulan, and Elsa from Frozen.

Mission Statement

(2013)

“The Walt Disney Company's objective is to be one of the world's leading producers and providers

of entertainment and information, using its portfolio of brands to differentiate its content, services and

consumer products. The company's primary financial goals are to maximize earnings and cash flow, and

to allocate capital toward growth initiatives that will drive long-term shareholder value.”

(2019)

The mission of The Walt Disney Company is to entertain, inform and inspire people around the

globe through the power of unparalleled storytelling, reflecting the iconic brands, creative minds and

innovative technologies that make ours the world’s premier entertainment company.

Vision Statement

“To be one of the world’s leading producers and providers of entertainment and information”

Goal

To achieve exceptional performance by embedding corporate citizenship into all of decisions and

actions guided by three corporate principles: ethics, happiness, and inspiration.

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Milestones

Disney went through a lot of time changing and innovating through years. These changes created

significant effect to their company’s success as well as to the people who worked together with Disney

through time.

Walt Disney arrived in California in the summer of 1923 with a lot of hopes but little else. He had

made a cartoon in Kansas City about a little girl in a cartoon world, called Alice’s Wonderland, and he

decided that he could use it as his “pilot” film to sell a series of these “Alice Comedies” to a distributor.

Soon after arriving in California, he was successful. A distributor in New York, M. J. Winkler, contracted

to distribute the Alice Comedies on October 16, 1923, and this date became the start of the Disney

company. Originally known as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, with Walt Disney and his brother,

Roy, as equal partners, the company soon changed its name, at Roy’s suggestion, to the Walt Disney

Studio.

The original Disney Studio had been in the back half of a real estate office on Kingswell Avenue

in Hollywood, but soon Walt had enough money to move next door and rent a whole store for his studio.

That small studio was sufficient for a couple of years, but the company eventually outgrew it, and Walt

had to look elsewhere. He found an ideal piece of property on Hyperion Avenue in Hollywood, built a

studio, and in 1926, moved his staff to the new facility. It was at the Hyperion Studio, after the loss of

Oswald, that Walt had to come up with a new character, and that character was Mickey Mouse. With his

chief animator, Ub Iwerks, Walt designed the famous mouse and gave him a personality that endeared him

to all. Ub animated two Mickey Mouse cartoons, but Walt was unable to sell them because they were

silent films, and sound was revolutionizing the movie industry. So, they made a third Mickey Mouse

cartoon, this time with fully synchronized sound, and Steamboat Willie opened to rave reviews at the
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Colony Theater in New York November 18, 1928. A cartoon star, Mickey Mouse, was born. The new

character was immediately popular, and, a lengthy series of Mickey Mouse cartoons followed.

While the cartoons were gaining popularity in movie houses, the Disney staff found that

merchandising the characters was an additional source of revenue. A man in New York offered Walt $300

for the license to put Mickey Mouse on some pencil tablets he was manufacturing. Walt Disney needed

the $300, so he said okay. That was the start of Disney merchandising. Soon there were Mickey Mouse

dolls, dishes, toothbrushes, radios, figurines—almost everything you could think of bore Mickey’s

likeness. The year 1930 was a big one for the mouse that started it all, as it saw the first Mickey Mouse

book and newspaper comic strip published.

One night in 1934, Walt informed his animators that they were going to make an animated feature

film, and then he told them the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. There were some skeptics in

the group, but before long everyone had caught Walt’s enthusiasm, and work began in earnest. It took

three years, but the landmark film debuted on December 21, 1937 and became a spectacular hit. Snow

White soon became the highest-grossing film of all time, a record it held until it was surpassed by Gone

with the Wind. Now Walt Disney’s studio had firmer footing. The short cartoons paid the bills, but Walt

knew that future profits would come from feature films. Work immediately began on other feature projects,

but just as things were looking rosy, along came World War II. The next two features, Pinocchio and

Fantasia, were released in 1940. They were technical masterpieces, but their costs were too high for a

company losing most of its foreign markets because of the war. During the war, Walt made two films in

South America, Saludos Amigos and The Three Caballeros, at the request of the State Department. His

studio concentrated on making propaganda and training films for the military. When the war ended, it was

difficult for the Disney Studio to regain its pre-war footing. Several years went by with the release of
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“package” features—films such as Make Mine Music and Melody Time, containing groups of short

cartoons packaged together.

Disneyland, Treasure Island

The year 1950 saw big successes at Disney—the first completely live-action film, Treasure Island,

the return to classic animated features with Cinderella, and the first Disney television show at Christmas

time. The Company was moving forward again. After two Christmas specials, Walt Disney went onto

television in a big way in 1954 with the beginning of the Disneyland anthology series. This series

eventually would run on all three networks and go through six title changes, but it remained on the air for

29 years, making it the longest-running primetime television series ever.

Walt was never satisfied with what he had already accomplished. As his motion pictures and

television programs became successful, he felt a desire to branch out. One area that intrigued him was

amusement parks. He felt that there should be a park where parents and children could go and have a good

time together. This was the genesis of Disneyland. After several years of planning and construction, the

new park opened on July 17, 1955.

After the success of Disneyland, it was only natural for Walt to consider another park on the East

Coast. Prior to his death, the Company purchased land in Florida, and the Walt Disney World project,

located on some 28,000 acres near Orlando, was announced. It opened October 1, 1971. In Florida, the

Company had the space it lacked in California. Finally, there was room to create a destination resort,

unencumbered by the urban sprawl that had grown up around Disneyland. Walt Disney World would

include not only a Magic Kingdom theme park like Disneyland but also hotels, campgrounds, golf courses,

and shopping villages. It did not take long for Walt Disney World to become the premier vacation

destination in the world.

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Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, EPCOT

Roy O. Disney, who after Walt’s death oversaw the building and financing of Walt Disney World,

died in late 1971, and for the next decade the Company was led by a team including Card Walker, Donn

Tatum, and Ron Miller—all originally trained by the Disney brothers. One of Walt’s last plans had been

for the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, or EPCOT, as he called it. While he died before

the plans could be refined, they were brought out again in a few years, and in 1979, ground was broken

for the new park in Florida. EPCOT Center, a combination of Future World and World Showcase

representing an investment of more than a billion dollars, opened to great acclaim October 1, 1982.

The late 1980s brought new innovations to the Parks. At Disneyland, new collaborations with

filmmakers George Lucas and Francis Coppola brought Captain EO and Star Tours to the park, and Splash

Mountain opened in 1989. Over at Walt Disney World in Florida, Disney’s Grand Floridian Beach and

Caribbean Beach Resorts opened in 1988, and three new-gated attractions opened in 1989: the Disney-

MGM Studios Theme Park, Pleasure Island, and Typhoon Lagoon. More resort hotels opened in 1990 and

1991. Filmmaking hit new heights in 1988 as Disney, for the first time, led Hollywood studios in box-

office gross. Disney animation aslo began reaching even greater audiences, with The Little Mermaid being

topped by Beauty and the Beast in 1991, which was in turn topped by Aladdin in 1992. Hollywood Records

was formed to offer a wide selection of recordings ranging from rap to movie soundtracks. The Disney

success with animated films continued in 1994 with The Lion King, which soon became one of the highest-

grossing films of all time. It was followed by Pocahontas in 1995, The Hunchback of Notre Dame in 1996,

Hercules in 1997, Mulan in 1998, Tarzan in 1999, and then Fantasia/2000 at the turn of the century. Toy

Story pioneered computer-animation techniques, and was followed by successful sequels. Disney also

continued its strong presence in children’s animated programs for television and found success with

sequels to animated features released directly to the video market.

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Broadway, Tomorrowland

In 1994, Disney ventured onto Broadway with a very successful stage production of Beauty and

the Beast, followed in 1997 by a unique staging of a show based on The Lion King and in 2000 by Aida.

By restoring the historic New Amsterdam Theatre on 42nd Street, Disney became the catalyst for a

successful makeover of the famous Times Square area. A musical version of The Hunchback of Notre

Dame opened in Berlin, Germany in 1999. Early in 1996, Disney completed its acquisition of Capital

Cities/ABC. The $19 billion transaction, second-largest in U.S. history, brought the country’s top

television network to Disney, in addition to 10 TV stations, 21 radio stations, seven daily newspapers, and

ownership positions in four cable networks.

A whole new park, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, opened at Walt Disney World in 1998. With a

gigantic Tree of Life as its centerpiece, the park was Disney’s largest, spanning 500 acres. A major

attraction was the Kilimanjaro Safaris, where Guests could experience live African animals in an

amazingly accurate reproduction of the African savannah. An Asian area opened at Animal Kingdom in

1999. Back in California, Tomorrowland at Disneyland was redesigned in 1998.

Finding Nemo, Narnia, Robert Iger as new president

As the world moved toward a new century, Epcot became the host of Millennium Celebration, Test

Track (the longest and fastest Disney park attraction) opened, and other attractions were revised and

updated. The Walt Disney Company welcomed a new president—Robert A. Iger—and the Company

reached the $25 billion revenue threshold for the first time.

DVD releases became increasingly popular, especially when the company began adding generous

amounts of bonus material for viewers. The Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs DVD in 2001 sold more

than one million units on the first day of release. For the first time, in 2001, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts
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opened two new theme parks in the same year. In February, Disney’s California Adventure opened after

several years of major construction, which transformed the entire Anaheim area. The new park celebrated

the history, culture, and spirit of California, with areas ranging from a Hollywood Pictures Backlot to the

amusements of Paradise Pier. Joining it was an upscale shopping area, Downtown Disney and the Grand

Californian Hotel, celebrating the Craftsman style of architecture. Across the Pacific in Japan, Tokyo

DisneySea opened in September, looking to the myths, legends, and lore of the ocean as the inspiration

for its attractions and shows. March 2002 saw the opening of another foreign park, Walt Disney Studios,

featuring the history and lore and excitement of the movies, adjacent to Disneyland Paris. Ground was

broken in January 2003 for Hong Kong Disneyland.

The year 2003 saw two Disney films grossing more than $300 million at the box office—Pirates

of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and Disney•Pixar’s Finding Nemo. In fact, Disney became

the first studio in history to surpass $3 billion in global box office. In October, Mission: Space opened at

Epcot to great acclaim, and the following month the Company celebrated the 75th anniversary of Mickey

Mouse. As the year drew to a close, the Pop Century Resort opened at Walt Disney World.

After years of partnering, Disney acquired The Muppets and Bear in the Big Blue House in April

2004. Senator George Mitchell became chairman of the board, and movie theaters welcomed The

Incredibles. A major anniversary came in 2005 as Disneyland celebrated its 50th, and all of the Disney

theme parks joined in a Happiest Celebration on Earth. A brand-new theme park, Hong Kong Disneyland,

opened in September, and fall saw the successful releases of Chicken Little and The Chronicles of Narnia:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Robert A. Iger took over as CEO of The Walt Disney Company

on October 1 with the retirement of Michael Eisner.

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High School Musical, Cars, Marvel Acquisition

In 2006 High School Musical aired on Disney Channel and become an overnight sensation. In

May, Disney made a major purchase of Pixar Animation Studios. Disney-Pixar’s Cars was released in

June. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest beat Company records to become the company’s highest

grossing feature after its July release. Disney parks celebrated the Year of a Million Dreams with special

promotions. The big news in 2009 was the acquisition of Marvel Entertainment. The films Up (which

would win two Oscars), the first Disney nature film, Earth, and with a return to hand-drawn animation,

The Princess and the Frog, were in theaters that year. The first Disney film locally produced in Russia,

The Book of Masters, was released.

In theaters in 2012 were John Carter, Brave, Wreck-It Ralph, Frankenweenie, Lincoln

(DreamWorks), and Marvel Studios’ The Avengers. Bob Iger took on the additional title of chairman of

the board, and Alan Horn became chairman of The Walt Disney Studios. The Disney Junior cable channel

replaced SOAPnet. On Broadway, Newsies opened and won two Tony Awardsâ. Cars Land opened at

Disney California Adventure, and the Disney Fantasy set sail. At the Walt Disney World, Disney’s Art of

Animation Resort, an enlarged and enhanced Fantasyland, and a new Test Track opened. D23 sponsored

a Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives exhibit at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum.

The big corporate news was the acquisition of Lucasfilm Ltd.

The beginning of 2013 saw a big achievement for Tokyo Disneyland. On April 15, it celebrated its

30th anniversary, naming it “The Happiness Year.” It was also a good year for films when the Company

introduced audiences to a new, yet familiar set of horns when Maleficent premiered. Guardians of the

Galaxy and Big Hero 6 flew into theaters and were critical and box-office smashes. In 2015, the live-action

film Cinderella reminded us to have courage and be kind. While the film provided many emotional

moments, it was not long after that, we came face-to-face with all of them—literally—with Disney-Pixar’s
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Inside Out. Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man debuted in July, and the fourth D23 Expo took place in August at

Anaheim. Then, that galaxy far, far away moved a closer when Star Wars: The Force Awakens debuted in

December. In 2016 Zootopia premiered in March. Then, it animals of a very different kind pounced onto

the screen in the live-action The Jungle Book. Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge had its official groundbreaking,

and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story arrived in theaters on December 16. Moana and Doctor Strange were

two other box-office smashes in 2016. In 2017, Miguel and Dante introduced us to the power of family in

the Academy Award winner Coco. Then, Star Wars: The Last Jedi premiered in December and continued

the saga of Rey, Poe, Finn, and Kylo Ren.

2018 began, Minnie Mouse, was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, joining her

pals Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. In February, Marvel introduced us to the newest hero to join the

Avengers with Black Panther, which would go on to break several records and win multiple Oscars. We

saw a childhood favorite unfold before us in A Wrinkle in Time, while also greeting some beloved

characters once more in Christopher Robin. Lucasfilm and Marvel Studios also brought back some

favorites with Solo: A Star Wars Story and Ant-Man and The Wasp, and Marvel also delivered the biggest

movie of the year globally with Avengers: Infinity War. November and December saw the releases of The

Nutcracker and the Four Realms and Mary Poppins Returns, respectively.

On Broadway the stage got a bit chillier when Disney Frozen The Broadway Musical premiered.

Pixar Pier also made its debut at Disney California Adventure, and across the way, The Tropical Hideaway

opened in Adventureland at Disneyland. As if that wasn’t enough, brand-new way to explore, play, and

listen in the parks arrived with the launch of the Play Disney app. For more than nine decades, The Walt

Disney Company has created entertainment of the very highest quality. From humble beginnings as a

cartoon studio in the 1920s to the company of today—which includes Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm and 21st
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Century Fox, Disney continues to provide quality entertainment for the entire family all around the world

(d23.com).

Besides the following success of Disney, most iconic milestones of Disney also includes the

following: In 1929, Disney releases Steamboat Willie, pioneering “fully synchronized” sound cartoons. In

1937, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, the first full-length animation feature, makes its debut. In

1963, The Tiki Room opens at Disneyland, introducing parkgoers to audio animatronics (electro-

mechanical robots). In 1977, Lucasfilm releases Star Wars, the first film shot with motion-control camera.

In 1982, The re-recording of Fantasia breaks ground as the first film done in digital sound. In 1986, Captain

EO, one of the first “4-D” films (a 3-D movie incorporating special effects such as smoke and lasers),

opens at Disneyland. In 1995, Pixar Animation Studios releases Toy Story, the first feature-length

computer-animated film. In 1998, ABC airs the first network broadcast in high-definition television, the

live-action version of 101 Dalmatians. In 2005, In an unprecedented deal, Disney makes full-length TV

episodes available on Apple’s iTunes Music Store. In 2006, ABC becomes the first network to offer ad-

supported TV episodes online for free, via its own branded player. In 2009, ESPN launches the

SportsCenter app, the most downloaded sports app of all time (with more than 55 million downloads). In

2013, MagicBands debut at Disney World, allowing guest to enter the park and pay for food using the

RFID-enabled wristbands. In 2014, Disney stores adopt Apple Pay, letting customers make purchases

using near-field communications capabilities on few iPhones. And in 2015, Disney will release an Apple

Watch with guess who on the face (Lev-Ram, 2014).

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People behind Walt Disney

Walt Disney

Walt Disney was an American motion picture and television producer

and showman, famous as a pioneer of cartoon films, including Mickey Mouse,

and as the creator of the amusement parks Disneyland and Disney World.

Walter Elias "Walt" Disney co-founded Walt Disney Productions with his brother Roy, which

became one of the best-known motion-picture production companies in the world. Disney was an

innovative animator and created the cartoon character Mickey Mouse. He won 22 Academy Awards during

his lifetime, and was the founder of theme parks Disneyland and Walt Disney World (Biography.com).

Walt Disney always desired to become an actor but later decided to draw political caricatures or

comic strips for a newspaper. His brother Roy got him a job at the Presmen Rubun Art Studio where he

created advertisements for newspaper, magazines and movie theatres. At this studio he met cartoonist

‘Ubbe Iwerks’ and they formed a company ‘Iwerks-Disney Commercial Artists’ which was short lived.

Walt Disney was filled with wonder and delight for this business and while working for the

company he created his own cartoon ‘Laugh-O-Grams’ for which he actually borrowed camera from the

company. This was a success and Disney’s cartoon really got appreciation from Kansas City and after this

he was in a position to acquire a studio and recruit his own animators. But he was not successful in paying

high salaries of his employees. So he decided to move to Hollywood for which he sold his camera in July

1923. He went to many studios but nothing worked out and he finally asked his brother Roy and his friend

cartoonist Iwerks to join him and they together began the Disney Brother’s Studio (Gaurav, 2015)
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Today, this company has annual revenues of approximately U.S. $35 billion. This succes is largely

due to a number of the world's most famous fictional characters he and his staff created including Mickey

Mouse, a character for which Disney himself was the original voice.

Disney won 26 Academy Awards out of 59 nominations, including a record four in one year, giving

him more awards and nominations than any other individual. He is also the namesake for Disneyland and

Walt Disney World Resort theme parks in the United States, as well as the international resorts in Japan,

France, and China.

Disney died of lung cancer in Burbank, California, on December 15, 1966. The following year,

construction began on Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. His brother Roy Disney inaugurated The

Magic Kingdom on October 1, 1971 (myenglishpages.com).

Roy O. Disney

Roy Oliver Disney was an American businessman, who co-founded

Walt Disney Productions, along with his younger brother, Walter Elias Disney;

the company is now known as The Walt Disney Company. A native of Illinois,

Roy grew up delivering newspapers along with his brother for their father. After

graduating high school, he left the newspaper-delivery business and held several

jobs in the following few years, including at a farm and in a bank. In 1917, Roy

enlisted in the US Navy but was discharged two years later when he was diagnosed with tuberculosis. In

1923, the brothers set up the Disney Bros. Studio. While Walt served as the creative head of the company,

Roy was in charge of the financial side of the business. In 1929, he became the first CEO (unofficially)

of Disney. After Walt’s death in 1966, Roy decided to delay his retirement until the construction of the

Walt Disney World was finished (Thefamouspeople.com)

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B. PRODUCTS OR SERVICE OFFERED

Through the years, the Walt Disney Company has grown and diversified on a large scale, with its

operating segments including media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment, and consumer

products. Disney undergo many changes since its creation, from its films, and how do they entertain us in

their many ways. Through the years, they created Disney parks and Disney lands that made people and

children happy. They have created classic films and animations that gave us lessons in many ways, and

make them win many awards, making them a very likeable company. Though they have undergone these

changes, the good thing is that they change for the betterment of their customers.

CHANGES OVER THE YEARS

One of the Walt Disney World’s greatest strengths has always been the power of nostalgia-- a

timeless wonder that has transcended generations. Despite the timeless magic of Walt Disney World,

change is inevitable, and it has come in droves over the past twenty years. While some of these shifts were

expected, like park expansions and the arrival of new attractions, others have been complete surprises, like

Disney’s game-changing purchases of both Marvel and Star Wars. Some of the changes have been good,

breathing fresh life into the Most Magical Place on Earth, while others have forced us to say goodbye to

some of those childhood memories. (Jett, 2019).

Explosive growth in size and spaces

Over the last twenty years, almost all four of Disney’s parks have undergone some sort of dramatic

expansion or renovation. Outside of the parks, resorts and recreational activities have multiplied to meet

increasing guest demands, to the point that in 2014, Disney opted to expands the off-property Disney

Wilderness Preserve (run by the Nature Conservancy) by 3000 acres to make room for further development

closer to the parks.

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The rise of intellectual properties

Intellectual properties—the characters, stories, and icons under Disney’s creative ownership—

have always been a key part of Walt Disney World’s development. While Walt Disney World twenty years

ago was plenty full of iconic Disney characters and stories, original stories still reigned supreme as source

material for attractions. Pirates of the Caribbean, The Haunted Mansion, Spaceship Earth, Test Track,

Expedition: Everest—all of these adventures relied on tales woven not by filmmakers or cartoonists but

conceived by Disney Imagineers and founders. Expedition: Everest, Mission: SPACE, and Soarin’ proved

to be the potential last of this dying breed of attractions. Even beyond classic Disney properties, the

company is making full use of their access to Avatar, Star Wars, and even the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

While the shift to emphasizing intellectual properties has led to the development of some

outstanding attractions and remarkable lands, there is a part of us that can’t help but miss some of that old

Disney parks originality in attraction development (Jett, 2019).

Immersion becomes the future of theme parks

Twenty years ago, the average theme park experience largely centered on spectator experiences.

While Disney has long stood on the cutting edge of immersion and hands-on fun in their attractions, there

were some unspoken rules about visiting theme parks. Kids could play pretend, but for adults, the

experience was mostly about observation. Primarily, Nostalgia and spectacle were the primary ingredients

most attractions aimed for.

The breaking point for immersion becoming the king buzzword in theme parks did not even

happen at Walt Disney World. It happened at Universal Studios with the opening of the Wizarding World

of Harry Potter. With new experiences, the unspoken rules were being broken, and for the first time, both

kids and adults were being invited, if they dared, to dive into the mists of make believe.
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Disney did not take long to plunge into these waters. The World of Pandora at Disney’s Animal

Kingdom proved a staggering success, proving immersive theme park lands were the future. Star Wars:

Galaxy’s Edge has already echoed this success in Disneyland and is already taking guests into new

territory never before explored by theme parks (Jett, 2019).

The evolution of edutainment

One of the biggest areas that set Disney parks apart from their competitors twenty years ago was

their talent for making learning fun. However, Edutainment isn’t necessarily dead at Disney parks, but it

has been seriously diminished over the years. Some great attractions with educational elements still

remain, including Turtle Talk with Crush, Kilimanjaro Safaris, and Spaceship Earth, but attractions with

Disney’s classic edutainment value are becoming harder and harder to find. This is one of the changes in

Disney parks that admittedly leaves us a little sad (Jett, 2019).

Aside from these evolutions and changes, other known changes by Disney is their digital evolution,

and how they dominating smartphones by providing Disney content such as games, apps, and information.

Changes to classic attractions are an unfortunate reality in all theme parks. Over the past two decades, we

saw Maelstrom make way for Frozen Ever After, Horizons become Mission: Space, The Magic of Disney

Animation become Star Wars Launch Bay, and even The Great Movie Ride wasn’t spared to make way

for Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railroad.

These changes certainly aren’t all bad, even if there is much we miss about the Walt Disney World

of yesteryear. The good news is that even if the Most Magical Place on Earth has undergone a lot of

changes, there are many signs that the best might be yet to come.
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Changes over the Past 2 Years

Disney had undergone a lot of changes and innovations with their products such as their movies,

theme parks and rides, and with their entertainment and products, and services. Moreover, seeing that

Disney is very famous for its entertainment, Disney has a lot to provide for its consumers. And for the past

2 years, Disney accomplished so many great things that benefited not only them, but to their customers as

well.

In 2017, Zootopia wins the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature at the 89th Academy

Awards. Disney also ends its deal with Netflix beginning in 2019. Disney also announces that it had

exercised an option to increase its stake in BAMTech to 75%, and would launch a subscription video-on-

demand service featuring its entertainment content in 2019, which will replace Netflix as the subscription

VOD rights holder of all Disney theatrical film releases. In 2017, John Lasseter announces that he is taking

a six-month leave of absence from the company, after acknowledging "missteps" in his behavior with

employees. And in 2017, Disney announces its acquisition of key assets and businesses of 21st Century

Fox from Rupert Murdoch. 2017 also marks the opening of Pandora – The World of Avatar at Disney's

Animal Kingdom. In films, Disney released Beauty and the Beast---live action adaptation of Disney's 1991

animated film of the same name, Marvel movies such as Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Thor: Ragnarok

and Spider-Man: Homecoming, which was the First solo Spider-Man film within the Marvel Cinematic

Universe. Cars 3, Star Wars, were also released, and Coco, an animated fantasy film produced by Pixar

Animation Studios was also released which won two Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature and

Best Original Song of 2017. (Wikipedia.org)

In 2018, Disney announces that Lasseter would leave the company, and that Pete Docter and

Jennifer Lee would assume the roles of chief creative officer for Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios,

respectively. In June of the same year, Comcast announces a $65 billion all cash counter-offer to acquire
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the Fox assets that Disney was set to purchase. Disney counterbid with a $71.3 billion offer. Comcast

drops offer in pursuit of Sky plc and Disney is free to acquire 21st Century Fox and most of their assets.

Also on June 28, Disney shuts down DisneyToon Studios. In movies, Disney released Black Panther,

which is the first superhero film to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Picture. The film has

also won three Oscars for Best Costume Design; Best Production Design and Best Original Score of 2018.

Disney also released Solo: A Star Wars Story, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Incredibles 2, Christopher Robin,

Ralph Breaks the Internet, Mary Poppins Returns, and Avengers Endgame, which grossed nearly $2.8

billion worldwide making it the highest grossing film of all time overtaking 2009’s avatar. (Wikipedia.org)

In Disney’s Hollywood Studios, Toy Story Land opens June 30th at Hollywood Studios. Toy Story

Mania also gets a new entrance and third track and the New Adventures from new Star Wars films added

to Star Tours the Adventures Continue. 2018 was also the year when Disney kicked off the Incredible

Tomorrowland Expo with Disney-Pixar Super heroes like Mr. Incredible, Frozone, Edna Mode and others

from The Incredibles and Incredibles 2. Disney Skyliner also opened, connecting those resorts via a new

gondola system that will take guest to the entrance of Disney’s Hollywood Studios and the International

Gateway at Epcot. A Family splash ride Roaring Springs also opens in ZooTampa (bestoforlando.com)

MARKET SHARE IN THE INDUSTRY

About 90 years after his creation of the famous Mickey Mouse, Walt Disney’s legacy continues to

entertain children and adults alike around the world. In 2018, Disney was among the largest companies in

the world in terms of market value, and ranked as the joint-fourth most reputable company in the world.

The Walt Disney Company is not only a strong and well-recognized brand, but also a profitable one. In

total, the company generated more than 59 billion U.S. dollars in revenue in 2018.
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Initially founded as a cartoon studio in 1923, the Walt Disney Company has grown and diversified

on a large scale, with its operating segments including media networks, parks and resorts, studio

entertainment, and consumer products. Walt Disney’s media network business is the most profitable

division of the company, accounting for over forty percent of Disney’s total global revenue in 2018. The

Disney Channel, ESPN, History, Lifetime, A&E, FYI, and LMN are a few examples of Disney-owned

channels. The Walt Disney Company is also one of the leading film studios in the world, responsible for

several of the world's most expensive movie productions in the industry, as well as some of the most hotly

anticipated titles. Walt Disney Studios owns The Muppets Studio, the highly successful Pixar Animation

Studios, Marvel Entertainment, and George Lucas’ Lucasfilm. And right after the acquisition of 20th

Century Fox and Fox Searchlight, Disney will stand head and shoulders above the remaining four of the

former ‘Big 6’. With a combined domestic box office market share of nearly 28 percent (29 percent if you

include Fox Searchlight) since 1995, Disney including 20th Century Fox will be larger than its closest

competitors, Warner Bros. (15.12%) and Sony (12.10%) combined (Richter, 2018). And in 2018, Disney

acquired a total market share of 26% from all the movies they’ve had released, this success was caused by

box office success of three of Disney’s releases which hit the billion-dollar mark globally, including

Avengers: Infinity War with $2.05 billion, Black Panther with $1.35 billion and Incredibles 2 with $1.24

billion., While Ant-Man and The Wasp also surpassed $620 million (waltdisneycompany.com). And with

this The Walt Disney Studios Posts $7.3B in Global Box Office and Record Domestic Year of $3.09

Billion earning them a 26.0% market share in total (boxofficemojo). Next to them are the warner bos

which acquired a market share of 16.3%, followed by Universal (14.9%), Sony/Colombia (10.9%), and

20th Century Fox (9.1%).

Walt Disney was intent on entertaining off-screen as well as on-screen. With 150 million attendees

in 2017, Disney is by far the largest amusement park chain in the world, and in 2018 generated over 20

billion U.S. dollars in revenue from its theme parks alone. Aside from the park and resort business, Disney
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also has a strong presence in the cruise industry. American travelers rated Disney as the best large-ship

cruise line, and the seventh best midsized-ship cruise line in 2018.In the consumer market, Disney is the

leading company in licensed merchandise worldwide. Disney Consumer Products’ global retail sales stood

at 53 billion U.S. dollars in 2017, whereas Meredith, its closest competitor in the market, registered a total

of 23.2 billion U.S. dollars in sales during the same period. In 2018, Disney's revenue from consumer

products was about 3.06 billion U.S. dollars in licensing and publishing, and approximately 1.59 billion

U.S. dollars in retail and other segments (Fuller, n.d.).

C. COMPETITORS

Disney has many competitors even when they started. When they started making shorts with

Mickey Mouse, Pat Sullivan had Felix the Cat. And when cartoons became popular in the 30’s and 40’s,

there was one guy who use to work on Oswald with Disney named Friz Freleng who decided to leave

Disney and make his own studio and with a bunch of great directors like Tex Avery, Chuck Jones, and

Bob Camplett they made The Looney Tunes. In the 1990’s DreamWorks animation was founded by

Jeffrey Katzenberg as to rival Disney, ready to show Disney how to make a real fairy tale with Shrek But

in 2013, Dreamworks made movies that would make them lose lots of money like Turbo, Mr. Peabody

and Sherman, and The Penguins of Madagascar (quora). However, today we have a new animation studio

from Universal that could be argued that they are films are just as profitable as Disney's animated films.

So after all that, Disney has always had a competitor no matter what.

Disney faces a number of competitors across its various markets, with Viacom (VIA), Time

Warner (TWC), 21st Century Fox (FOX), Sony (SNE), CBS (CBS) and Comcast (CMCSA) being its main

competitors. Aside from these, Disney also competes in the strong and lucrative sports market. Within the
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larger media industry, Silicon Valley giants such as Amazon, Apple, Google and Facebook dwarf Disney.

Any of which, are theoretically large enough to buy the Walt Disney Company.

Disney's studio entertainment businesses continually manage to innovate, and profits often show

this. Disney produces a range of consumer products with involvement in licensing, publishing and retail,

and therefore competes with other vendors in these areas. However, according to Market Realist, Disney

believes it is the largest worldwide licensor of character-based merchandise (Segal, 2019).

Biggest Competitors

While we think that Disney has many competitors in the market, we thought that the biggest

competitors of Disney compete with Disney's products mainly through TV, cable and other media

markets such as DVD/Blue-ray, video games and the Internet.

In Media

Warner Bros remains as the top competitor of Disney in media, as they always go head to head

battles with their film releases and box office hits. Because since then they have always tried duplicating

each other’s success back by when the warner bros started making films that duplicates Disney. Through

years, they’ve releases tons of movies, and animations that had them up in a tight fight in the market.

While in 2018, Disney in media earned a total market share of 26%, Warner on the other hand acquired a

total of 16.3% of the market.

Warner Brothers started their animation department in 1930 in an attempt to duplicate the success

Disney was having. They began with their “Merry Melodies” shorts, which were cartoons made to promote

their music. Warner Bros and Disney own two biggest comic-book publishers DC and Marvel,

respectively. While in comics, the competition is breakneck, in films based on the same characters Marvel

has taken a lead. The current rivalry between Marvel and DC is only the latest chapter in the battle between
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the two of the most iconic studios, Warner Bros and Disney. This cat-and-mouse game goes back almost

100 years (Rawat, 2018).

Time Warner competes in the Cable Networks industry through its subsidiary Turner Broadcasting

System, with a 10.6% market share. Turner owns and operates eight cable networks in the US: TBS, CNN,

HLN, TNT, Cartoon Network, Turner Classic Movies, Adult Swim, and TruTV. Turner’s flagship

network, TBS, has been very successful with a lineup combining original series, syndicated programming,

and sports including MLB and NCAA Basketball. As of October 2012, Turner’s yearly revenue is

estimated to be $1.9 billion in the Cable Networks industry (Carillo, et. Al., 2012).

In Theme Parks

In theme parks, what is popular is really Disneyland and Universal Studios. These two parks are

known for immersion experience that brings happiness to their customers. We can say that this is their

biggest competitor as they’ve always been on trend, and through the influence of movies, these two

innovate their parks in line with their movies.

Disney’s biggest competitor is Universal Parks and Resorts, with a market share of 16.8% (IBIS,

2015). It is owned by NBC Universal, and operates 3 theme parks in 2 locationsUniversal Studios in Los

Angeles and Universal Studios/ Universal’s Island of Adventure in Orlando, Florida (Universal, 2015).

Much like Disney, Universal tends to create their attractions based off the company’s popular movies

released through Universal Studios. Attendance at Universal Studios has increased as of late due to the

popularity of the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter in its Florida Park (McKenna, 2015). “Attendance

at Universal's Islands of Adventure park in Orlando jumped 66 percent between 2009 and 2011, to 7.7

million annual visitors” (Palmeri &MacMillan, 2013, p.1).

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In Comics

As Warner Bros and Disney own two biggest comic-book publishers DC and Marvel, we can say

that these two competes in the comic-segment, as these two comic-books are well known for to its stories,

characters, and now it is being relevant cause of movie adaptations. In comics, Marvel is always the

counterpart of DC, and it still remains, as they’ve been there for years trying to hook up teens with their

stories even before.

DC was founded in the year 1984 and has its headquarters in California. Its list of publications

ranges from fiction genres in crime, science fiction, comedy to imprints among others. Being a subsidiary

of Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. DC produces content from heroic characters e.g. Wonder Woman,

The flash, Super-girl, Superman, Green Arrow and Batman et cetera. ‘DC’ was obtained from a common

series called Detective Comics that stirred Batman in his debut. Despite competition from all the above

companies, Disney has always managed to remain afloat.

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D. Market Description

“Disney’s success in customer service and building loyalty is more than magic; it’s grounded in

time-tested business practices refined over many years” (Jones, 2013, p.38). Disney believes that every

interaction a “cast member”, aka staff has with a customer is a chance to build brand loyalty and

connections. The company recognizes what they call magic moments that are chances to build a

relationship with a visitor (Jones, 2013). Disney has not just thought about their direct audience, but also

people who may influence or make decisions for them.

Customer Sensitivity

Walt viewed his theme parks almost as “factories” that produced delight and entertainment, and

that is what customer wants. Customer always want to take up a vacation from difficulties, struggles,

problems of reality, and Disney provides it for them. Disney also provides customer satisfaction by

prioritizing the customer experience journey, without jeopardizing the product in the meantime. Disney

also deliver the best customer experience and creates emotional connections with all its customers. They

are not just selling rides, but creating an experience.

Disney understands its customers holistically because it is constantly capturing feedback. The

Disney survey team is in the theme parks capturing customer feedback as guests exit and enter the facility

(qualtrics.com).

Disney always considers its customers, as they’ve always been open for suggestions, and always

try to improve their products by asking what their customer wants. They would also focus on giving the

best experience, and always observing up to the small details of what customers’ needs. They’ve been

giving reasons to make customers happy, like Turning around misfortunes, Ending the experience strong,

and Fulfilling the unique needs of their customers.

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Customers Reason to Buy

Customer tends to patronize Disney as to many reasons, Disney was been there through years, so

one reason why customers love Disney is that customers want to reminisce their past as a child and to

enjoy their moment again by having or buying Disney products. Disney also offers movies, and

entertainment that customers can enjoy, and gives values, especially to kids. They also offer great movie

adaptations from comics, such as Marvel characters, and remakes of Disney princesses that will ultimately

attract kids. Overall, Disney always give customer satisfaction with their products and services, and they

always releases something new, that can benefit us, especially children. Disney offers theme parks which

Disney promises to make magical experiences come alive, and to create happiness via these experiences

Disney aims to deliver its brand promise by making these mundane details magical, and focusing on the

unexpected ways it might bring happiness to customers.

Disney provides a fantasy life even for a short time in which everything is happy, and pretty and it

provides a vicarious alternate reality we can buy into and become immersed in as if we had re-entered a

care-free childhood where everything is done for us and every corner we turn reveals yet another wonder,

thrill, or great old friend.

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E. PRICING STRATEGY

Disney applies the following pricing strategies for its diverse product mix:

 Market-oriented pricing strategy- Also known as a competition-based strategy, market-oriented

pricing compares similar products being offered on the market. Then, the seller sets the price higher

or lower than their competitors depending on how well their own product matches up

(priceintelligently.com).

 Value-based pricing strategy- Value-based pricing is a strategy of setting prices primarily based on a

consumer's perceived value of the product or service in question. Value pricing is customer-focused

pricing, meaning companies base their pricing on how much the customer believes a product is worth.

(Investopedia)

The Walt Disney Company applies the market-oriented pricing strategy for products like movies,

which are priced according to prevailing industry standards. The value-based pricing strategy is used for

various products, such as memorabilia at the company’s parks and resorts. Value-based prices are set

according to the actual or perceived value that Disney’s products have for target customers. Through the

value-based pricing strategy, the multinational business optimizes its prices as long as it maintains a strong

brand image and effective marketing campaigns. The strategies in this part of Disney’s marketing mix are

intended to maximize profit margins, especially in situations where the company’s products have weak

substitutes.
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IS IT EFFECTIVE?

Based from the market position Disney is on now, we can say that their pricing strategy and market

penetration are all effective. As of now, we can see them at the top of their game, leading the mass-media

market, and outdoing their competitors in terms of sale. With a total market share of 26% plus the

acquisition of Fox, they will lead the market and no competitor can outdo them in the next years. Disney

is one of the richest companies in the world, and one of the most well-known, and since they are successful

in their venture, we can say that what they do, and how they market their price and their product is

effective.

The Market Oriented-pricing on movies are effective given that in the early 2019, Avengers

endgame topped the block office films of 2019, and was topped as the highest grossing film of all-time

passing 2009’s Avatar. The film alone earned approximately $2.8 billion worldwide. and in 2018, Disney

Makes History Again With $7 Billion at Global Box Office, marking only the second time in history that

any studio has hit that landmark. Disney set the record in 2016 with $7.6 billion. Given that Disney owns

some of the most popular movie franchises, and production companies such as Marvel, and Lucas films,

Disney using the Market-oriented pricing is efficient and is all-effective.

Disney is also effective in using the Value-based Pricing on their products. In 2018, Disney also

generated over 20 billion U.S. dollars in revenue from its theme parks alone, and Disney Consumer

Products’ global retail sales stood at 53 billion U.S. dollars in 2017, whereas Meredith, its closest

competitor in the market, registered a total of 23.2 billion U.S. dollars in sales during the same period.

Given from the data stated, we can say that Disney is wise in pricing their products, and them using the

value-based is effective.
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